Norway's TTS Handling Systems AS, part of TTS Marine, Bergen, has won two contracts from Edison Chouest Offshore, headquartered in Galliano, Louisiana, for panel lines in specialized offshore shipyards in North America and Brazil.

Edison Chouest is one of the world's largest operators of Offshore Supply Vessels (OSVs) having a fleet of some 150 such vessels operating throughout the world.

The company also operates newbuilding facilities in North America and is currently expanding overseas.

North American Shipbuilders (NAS), part of Edison Chouest Offshore, has been constructing offshore supply vessels (OSVs) since 1974 at its shipyard in Larose, Louisiana.

TTS is upgrading an existing panel line at NAS by installing a single-sided welding facility as well as a stiffener fit-up gantry and a web fit-up gantry.

Meanwhile, Edison Chouest Offshore is currently constructing a new shipyard close to the Brazilian port of Itaji for the purpose of building OSVs for the Brazilian market.

The shipyard, which is being built on a greenfield site in Navegantes, Santa Catarina, is due to be operational by the end of this year/early 2006.

For the new shipyard in Brazil, TTS is supplying a complete 12 m panel line with vacuum based one side welding station for the single-sided welding of plates and with gantries for welding primary and secondary stiffeners to the panels.